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PORT-AU-PRINCE — Haiti endured a violent and tragic weekend marked by a series of incidents and unrest, leading to numerous deaths and the destruction of property, including a sunken ship that left many families in mourning. In one of the major incidents, the Haitian National Police (PNH) killed the notorious gang leader known as Kendy “Jeff Mafia”—the second-in-chief of the Viv Ansanm gang coalition after Jimmy “Barbecue” Chérizier—along with several other members.
According to Lionel Lazarre, deputy spokesperson for the PNH, operations conducted in Port-au-Prince on Dec. 14-15 led to the killing of Kendy “Jeff Mafia,” a key ally of Barbecue. Known as the second-in-command of the Delmas 6 gang, he was killed in a clash with PNH officers near Fort National, close to the National Palace and a base of the Haitian Armed Forces (FADH).
The PNH deputy spokesperson also reported that police killed several other gang members during the two-day operations, which spanned Delmas 6, Delmas 19, Carrefour Aéroport, Nazon, and Poste Marchand. The operations included prolonged gunfire exchanges, with stray bullets hitting homes in several neighborhoods, notably Delmas 30.
“Several other gang members accompanying Kendy were also killed in exchanges of gunfire with law enforcement,” Lazarre said. “These operations aim to weaken the control of criminal groups over strategic areas of the capital.”
Gang retaliation spreads terror after the death of Kendy Jeff Mafia
Following the death of Barbecue’s right-hand man, the Viv Ansanm coalition launched a wave of retaliatory attacks. In Poste Marchand, they burned several houses and the Church of God— a long-time church serving thousands of worshipers in the area— forcing dozens of residents to flee their homes. Smoke-filled images from the area circulated widely on social media, amplifying calls for police intervention.
In another attack near Village Solidarité on Route de l’Aéroport, gangs attempted to seize Bernard Mevs Hospital but were repelled by police. One person was killed outside their home during the assault.
Meanwhile, clashes continued in Artibonite, where law enforcement, supported by Kenyan police officers from the Multinational Security Support (MSS) mission, encountered resistance from gangs in Savien. As of now, no official toll from these encounters has been reported.
Amid the chaos, PNH introduced Pastor Dieuné Day, a Delmas/Port-au-Prince church senior leader and fugitive arrested on Dec. 12 by authorities from the Dominican Republic. Day, accused of arms trafficking linked to the Episcopal Church of Haiti, was extradited to Haiti over the weekend.
“The Central Directorate of the Judicial Police (DCPJ) had been searching for Pastor Day for various other charges, including tax evasion, smuggling, and association of criminals,” the PNH said in a statement accompanied by a video posted on its Facebook.
Denying his involvement, Day stated, “I still don’t know why I’m being arrested,” responding to police’s questions. He explained that he was the subject of an arrest warrant but chose to leave the country when he was slandered on social media and Port-au-Prince radios as a criminal in possession of firearms.
“I know I had a case before the appeals court. I was in Santo Domingo and entered Haiti to meet with my lawyer so he could present me to the judge,” added the pastor of the Eglise Sur Le Rocher, French for Church on the Rock, based in Delmas 31.
In a separate tragedy, a ship transporting dozens of people and merchandise from Port-au-Prince to Miragoâne, a coastal city about 50-60 nautical miles from the Haitian capital, sank off Petit-Goâve in the early morning of Dec. 14. As off Monday night, only 21 survivors and one death were accounted for. Scores of passengers, including a Coast Guard officer, are reported missing.
The ship, La Sicilia, was registered in Port-de-Paix, the capital city of the Northwest Department, according to Haiti’s Maritime and Navigation Service’s (SEMANAH) records. Though official figures remain unconfirmed, the Haitian government acknowledged several fatalities. “Several lives were saved, but the tragedy remains heartbreaking,” the Prime Minister’s office stated, noting efforts of the government, particularly the Civil Protection Office and the SEMANAH, to assist survivors and families of victims.
Faced with the insecurity that has reigned on national roads for nearly two years, people no longer hesitate to risk their lives at sea to flee an insurmountable situation. The laxity of the authorities against the armed gangs that control most of Port-au-Prince continues to push Haitians to make extreme decisions, often at their peril.
The post Haiti news roundup: Police kill gang members, top ally of ‘Barbecue’ Chérizier, as Port-au-Prince violence surges appeared first on The Haitian Times.
